Ethan's Magical Make-a-Wish WDW PTR (November 11-17, 2012):

[Owensheart]

Ethan is so cute. So glad he is doing well cardiacwise. Can't imagine what it would be like to go a year between appointments!! Woo!!! We haven't gone more than six weeks, so a year would be fabulous! I love to hear good heart stories.

Ask any questions you want.. you can also find me on our blog http://owensheart.com. We went in December, so you'll have the same type of decor up in November. It will definetely get you into the Christmas spirit!

 

[aym4Him]

Ethan is so cute. So glad he is doing well cardiacwise. Can't imagine what it would be like to go a year between appointments!! Woo!!! We haven't gone more than six weeks, so a year would be fabulous! I love to hear good heart stories.

Ask any questions you want.. you can also find me on our blog http://owensheart.com. We went in December, so you'll have the same type of decor up in November. It will definetely get you into the Christmas spirit!

Ugh potty training .. I remember those days.

I got lucky and both boys were done by their 3rd birthday (which was a total shock to me). I used the "let them be naked" technique and it worked out great !

Good luck and hopefully he'll be finished up with that business real soon .. although it sounds like he's just about there.

I will keep David in my thoughts and prayers.

Thanks, y'all!

It's been awhile!

Potty training is going better! Yes, I consider him still in training b/c we still have accidents here and there (he's wearing a pull up at night just because he sometimes comes and snuggles with Daddy and that's a Daddy rule. I'm not going to complain b/c I don't have to have a 3.5 yr old foot in my face all night!! Hahah. He and Daddy will camp out in the living room on nights he comes downstairs. He made it through an entire soccer practice (to/from, too) w/o having a problem or needing to go (whew, b/c there were no restrooms nearby!) yesterday. Earlier in the day, he had a couple of tee-tee accidents. Once after getting a hair cut (he was playing at the train table) and then a second time at Chick Fil A. Both times he was playing, but still. UGH. I take 4 sets of shorts and undies just about everywhere we go. It could be worse!!

The first time we went to yearly cardiac visits, we made it about 9 months, I think. Paranoia just got the best of us! It still kind of does (b/c his second surgery was a surprise issue) but I tend not to get too nervous until about a month out. I can't wait to read Owen's story!

As far as Disney planning, sigh, it stressed me out a lot so I kind of just put it on the back-burner. I have a real hard time planning ahead for things b/c I let the "what ifs" take over. Disney is hard because most planning involves a monetary commitment. Even though I know MAW is going to give us spending money, it's really hard for me to make ADRs with the thought in my mind that A. E could be totally freaked out by the characters or B. Someone could get sick and we wouldn't be able to go anyway. Those are just 2 of the things but A is a big factor. Ethan's fears can be kind of unpredictable. Things you would think would spook him might just make him laugh. Things you would think he would find utterly awesome make him cower and hide behind us. Since this trip is for him, I want to make it awesome but then I also want it to be something we can take at his own pace. For instance, I hear GKTW is so awesome (he is especially going to love the ice cream shoppe). I'm afraid he's not going to want to leave and go to the parks! I know we are GOING to go to them, but having something scheduled that we have to be at may only add more stress to the occasion.

Am I making sense? Am I fretting too much?

We (his dad and I) were super-stoked to find out they would be having MVMCP the week we are there but now we're wondering if we should go or just keep to the nightly activities at GKTW (one night is Christmas and the other Halloween). We'll miss the Pirates and Princesses party b/c that's when we fly back home (we are only down Saturday-Friday). We had also talked about extending our trip but would have to do it to the first part b/c the next is the week before Thanksgiving and the wish manager said they would be more willing to change our flights to prior to b/c of cost.

Sorry I'm so rambly and may sound whiney here. I'm really not. Well, rambly- yes.

On the home front, Ethan is doing incredibly well. He's had a fun summer filled with 2 trips to my home state (AL). One was to the beach (as mentioned previously) and we just returned from an impromptu 2nd trip b/c I needed to go through my late parents' home and help get things ready for an estate sale. It was surreal for E at times b/c there are people living there now (renting-hopefully they will buy) and not his Grandpa. He had no problems making himself at home (and I'm glad the family was so accommodating to him!) . It was hard, sometimes, to tell him he couldn't do something (or help himself to the kitchen!) b/c Grandpa didn't live there anymore. Of course, "death" came up and it pierced my heart to have to talk about Dad dying with him (I was VERY basic). Ethan saw him at the funeral home and kissed his head but he was just about 2 when Dad passed, so he really doesn't remember that part. His basic takeaway was, "He's dead? He's not gonna move anymore?" (referring to a dead dragonfly he'd seen earlier) So, thereyago.

Please continue to pray for David. He is STILL in the hospital, possibly battling heart failure. He has fought from the jaws of death and is an amazing little boy. They are starting to wean his milrinone today. There are signs the heart failure is there and this probably is just a step to evaluate his need for maybe even a new heart. I don't know www.caringbridge.org/visit/babyhood

Thanks for keeping up with us and I appreciate the support!!

Take care,

Amy

 

[aym4Him]

I forgot to mention his tube surgery!

It actually happened a day earlier than anticipated due to a scheduling error on the Dr's part. It's funny that such a small change sent me into an emotional tizzy! You never want your kid going "under (even if it's a mild form of anesthesia)" and your mind goes everywhere. The wondering if this is a good thing for him or not crossed my mind a million times. It was just TUBES! The kid has had two open heart surgeries for crying out loud... Yes, I need intervention....

Anyway, it took FOREVER for the "goofy juice" to kick in. The dr kept coming by, checking his watch (seemingly impatiently), waiting to take him to the OR. The nurse was amazed at his resilience! He watched a movie for a while and, then it happened. He looked at the pulse ox on his thumb for a second, held it up a little closer and then YELLED at it! Like it was a microphone! Then, the nurse asked him his name and how old he was. Oh, that was super-funny. He wasn't as "goofy" as we had hoped (for our entertainment purposes ), but at least it was working. Sadly, after they came to roll him into the OR, I could hear him yelling, "I want MOMMY!"

He did great. The dr came out to let us know how he did and give us the antibiotic drops to administer over the next week. When the orderly came out to take us to recovery, he had this look on his face when he said, "He's awake." It was one of those, "Oh my gosh. Come get your child!" looks. I said, "Oh yeah?" He said, "He's awaaaake." Ha. Sure enough, I heard his yell as soon as the door opened and E was all the way around on the other side! He was NOT happy. They warned he might be agitated. Yeah, they were right! He still had his IV in (normally, no IV is required, but they put one in b/c of his cardiac status, just in case). I wasn't expecting that it would still be there. He wanted it OUT. The nurse kept saying they'd do it when we transferred to the other floor but she ended up pulling it b/c he would NOT stop crying about it. He was kind of incoherently mumbling/crying. She needed to hold pressure and he did NOT like that so she gave me his arm to let me do it. He didn't like that, either and was wailing. Wailing = higher bp = more bleeding. Yeeesh. That took a bit but he was distracted some by the orange popsicle that magically appeared. He just wasn't himself at all. We got the fastpass transfer to floor 2 (discharge).

In 2, he calmed down a bit more. The room was darkened and they brought him some cookies and a BLUE slushie (his fav color). I was impressed! We didn't get to enjoy such perks when he was a heart baby . Well, he was ready to go HOME and didn't care about that stuff. So, we headed out. Well, then he cried b/c he wanted to go BACK in! This was his typical "I want the opposite of what you think I want" response, but a little more agitated. I was holding him when we got to the foyer of the children's hospital (cool butterflies, big tree and a caterpillar to climb on) and he wiggled down. I thought he was going to the tree but he did a 180, barefoot, ditched his Buzz Lightyear lunchbox (threw it) and ran for the elevators!!! Much to any spectator's dismay, I had to RUN after him b/c that kid is FAST!! I snatched him up and he proceeded to beat the snot out of me! He was ANGRY and it hurt! My husband was being the pack mule so he had his hands full. I just took it and we headed out. In the parking lot, I had to give up and trade with DH. E started on his poor dad. We got to the car, opened the sliding door for E to get in and he ran to the other side and proceeded to push the button to open THAT door in an effort to escape! WOW! I grabbed him and DH locked the door. He then sat and screamed, "I want to go back IN!" Then, he tried to bite DH! When that didn't work, he bit his own thumb, HARD! He yelled a little more. I was sure security was going to come for us at any moment .

Finally, I got him into my lap where he cried softly yet still tried to fight. We pulled to the ticket window and paid for our parking and then pulled around to an adjacent lot so I could snuggle him til he was ready to be put into his car seat. That finally happened and in less than 5 minutes, he was sleeping. He continued to sleep once we got home and woke up our normal and happy Ethan. Oh my goodness. I declared, right then and there, if this happens again (his tubes fall out prematurely), we are hiring stand-in parents until the post-surgery nap is over!!

Now, back to trip planning!!!

I forgot that I had read Owen's report before and I remembered quickly just how awesome it was! This time, Ethan sat in my lap and pored over all the pictures. This was good and bad. His dad is lamenting in the other room b/c Ethan clearly stated he would NOT be seeing any Star Wars characters or super heroes b/c they are "scawwy." I had hoped he'd see how Owen interacted with them and that it would show him they are not scary at all, but it did not change his mind at all. He loves pretending to be these guys but he doesn't even want to meet Sully and Mike (GASP!) b/c "Sully has teeth and horns." Monsters, Inc has been one of his favorite movies. Stitch was a "no" too! What?? Oh man.....

He does have a list of those he wants to "Give hug and a high 5 to": Toy Story (especially Buzz, Woody and Jessie), Mickey and his gang, Princesses, Winnie the Pooh and his friends (is there a way to see them without doing a character meal??), Handy Manny, Oso, June (from Little Einsteins), and Jake. One of the keys to this is the characters' expression. If he/she is smiling, they are golden. He was adamant that he would NOT be seeing the Grinch but would love a picture with the Cat in the Hat.

We have been worried if this trip was too soon. My husband (Dillon) is really thinking about this, saying, "Next year, he's going to kick himself b/c he didn't want to see any of his super heroes and Star Wars guys." I'm already feeling "Wish picker's guilt" as it is, wondering if we should have waited til Ethan was older. This isn't helping!! He's super excited about all the ice cream he's going to eat- and the trains at GKTW. I know he's going to have a BLAST but I can't help but wonder if we should have waited.

OH WELL! Can't spend time fretting about that. We can't change our minds now, so ON WITH THE PLANNING!!

This post is too long so I'll give y'all time to catch up before posting again

 

[alyssaswish]

I'm a little worried about Alyssa being scared of some of the characters with the big heads. If she doesn't want to meet them, we'll just move on. I'm hoping she'll get a little taste of them at GKTW before we hit the parks to break the ice a little. I think we'll have a fabulous time no matter what happens! Try not to worry and enjoy! Not long now...we'll see you there!

 

[Lilfoot93]

Joining in! Not sure how I missed this PTR...

What a beautiful family you have! I am so glad Ethan is getting his wish! My wish kid Trevor is a heart kiddo too.

Looking forward to hearing about your planning and your trip.

Jackie

 

[mspols]

My 4 year old Lily was granted her wish to go to Disney...it looks Ike we will be headed there the week of nov 5 or 10th. Now I need to start planning. We are trying figure out what charachter meals..she loves princesses and any other must dos. My boys have been talking about aquatica....any and all info would be great I don't know where to start

 

[aym4Him]

I'm a little worried about Alyssa being scared of some of the characters with the big heads. If she doesn't want to meet them, we'll just move on. I'm hoping she'll get a little taste of them at GKTW before we hit the parks to break the ice a little. I think we'll have a fabulous time no matter what happens! Try not to worry and enjoy! Not long now...we'll see you there!

I can't wait to meet you all! We were at a soccer game this past weekend and there was a a huge parrot (mascot) representing a local grocery store. I thought since it wasn't a scary animal, E might think he was cool. Haha..nope. I couldn't get him within 15 feet of that "bird."

Joining in! Not sure how I missed this PTR...

What a beautiful family you have! I am so glad Ethan is getting his wish! My wish kid Trevor is a heart kiddo too.

Looking forward to hearing about your planning and your trip.

Jackie

Thank you, Jackie! Welcome!

My 4 year old Lily was granted her wish to go to Disney...it looks Ike we will be headed there the week of nov 5 or 10th. Now I need to start planning. We are trying figure out what charachter meals..she loves princesses and any other must dos. My boys have been talking about aquatica....any and all info would be great I don't know where to start

If you come on the 10th, we'll have to meet up! I'm sorry, but I won't be of much help. I'm kind of overwhelmed, myself! I haven't planned a thing. I'm pretty much a plannaphobic. Don't know if that's a word, but if there is a word for it, my name is part of the definition!

We have the 1st day of his 3 yr "pre-k" school year in the books! He had a really good 1st day. He had a good one last year but the 2nd, 3rd....16th (lol) weren't as great. I think this year will be different, though. He is much more familiar with the school and, even though he only has one familiar face in his class this year, he has great teachers! His first soccer game is tomorrow. I'm so thankful he's healthy enough to give it a try! To top it off, while it's been in the 100's here (I was VERY worried about that), it is only supposed to get up to 86 tomorrow! Yay!!!! Still hot but not scary hot.

His Wish Granting volunteers dropped off a cool gift for him last night. It's a Buzz Lightyear light spinner. We plan on taking it to Disney with us so he can have it for the fireworks show. I'm starting to get REALLY excited! Ethan keeps talking about ice cream- we were talking about things that are at Disney World (and GKTW) and the two things he is most excited about are trains and ice cream! In fact, he pretends to get us some every night before bed and sleeps with his right next to him (but not on his pillow so it doesn't get wet!). Anyway, he keeps saying he's not going to be scared of Mickey (and his crew), princesses, Winnie the Pooh (and his crew), Oso, Handy Manny, Jake, Buzz, Woody and a few other characters. Sure wish we could eat pizza with Buzz and Woody somewhere....

Ok. i'll let y'all know if I get brave and actually make a reservation

 

[vleeth]

Joining!

My dd7 was not quite 2 on our first trip and wanted nothing to do with the characters. We went back when she was 4 and she was fine.

If you want to test how he'll do, try to find characters around where you live. Do you have a Chuck E Cheese nearby?

 

[aym4Him]

Joining!

My dd7 was not quite 2 on our first trip and wanted nothing to do with the characters. We went back when she was 4 and she was fine.

If you want to test how he'll do, try to find characters around where you live. Do you have a Chuck E Cheese nearby?

Thank you for joining!!

We DO have a CEC nearby! The only thing about it is, he's been there (not too recently) and I wonder if that will give us a false sense of how he'll do (he'll have gotten used to him by the time we head to WDW). However, we need to take him anyway since it's been awhile. Good idea!! I was thinking we were going to have to fork out some major $$ and go to Six Flags. Do they even have characters anymore?

I've been reading a lot of tips and tricks here: http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2062337&page=7 That will take you to page 7 b/c that's where I am currently. Some will be handy for us wish families but some won't really apply. I am just copying the ones I think will help to a document. I feel like I'm pinning on Pinterest, there are so many!!

 

[carebearkidney]

I'm in! We have the exact same Woody outfit - with the matching fraying. (don't ask about the hat... it didn't make it - moment of silence please)
My son has had 29 surgeries and I didn't like his ear tubes being put in either - so no intervention needed. It's a mommy thing! I'm trying to consider the pros/cons of character meals too. I want to let him SEE the big characters up close first when we are there, but I'm afraid it would be too late to reserve a meal by that point. Can't wait to read a bit more about the trip, happy to see updates.

 

[onceagain1]

Just finished reading your PTR, he sure is a cutey. And similar defect to my daughter's, she's had the norwood, glenn and fontan. We had some troubles with the norwood and glenn, the fontan actually went better than the others for us. Love reading your preparations, and yet again reminds me that I need to get our PTR set up already!!

I'm more of a planner than you are I think, but to be honest, I also haven't planned any dinners yet at DW as I'm not sure I want to pay out the money for them, and M (or Chatterbox as I call her) might not eat very much as she'll be excited, and perhaps impatient. I was also told we'll still get to meet any characters that she wants, for the most part.

Also wondering about the MVMMCP - is that the acronym for Mickey's Christmas Parade? I haven't researched it yet, but if GK is as magical as it seems to be, that might be enough for her. You'll have to let me know what you decide, and then bring a report back, as you go before we do.

heart hugs

 

[aym4Him]

I'm in! We have the exact same Woody outfit - with the matching fraying. (don't ask about the hat... it didn't make it - moment of silence please)
My son has had 29 surgeries and I didn't like his ear tubes being put in either - so no intervention needed. It's a mommy thing! I'm trying to consider the pros/cons of character meals too. I want to let him SEE the big characters up close first when we are there, but I'm afraid it would be too late to reserve a meal by that point. Can't wait to read a bit more about the trip, happy to see updates.

My goodness!! 29 surgeries! What a brave boy (and Mommy!)!

I know what you mean...this is supposed to be the time of our life (the trip) and the "what ifs" kind of sneak in and try to suck the life out of it! I have friends who have been (but not on a wish trip) so they can offer perspective but not exactly the same of a wish family. I'm so happy to have found this place!! Now, I need to start a thread reading, "All Wish Trippers Who Have Taken a 3.5 yr old to Disney, Please Post Here!" Actually, he'll be closer to 4 by the time we go, but still. For instance, I have a friend from high school who has some connections at Disney. She just messaged me saying that if E would like to meet a certain someone for an in-depth meeting, then to let her know and she'd see what she could do. This particular person is UBER cool when seen on TV and played with at home but he has made mention that this character will not "see him" at Disney (meaning, Ethan doesn't want to see him). *sniffle* So, for any of you who have gone, did your chicken littles turn to brave hearts by the time you arrived?

Just finished reading your PTR, he sure is a cutey. And similar defect to my daughter's, she's had the norwood, glenn and fontan. We had some troubles with the norwood and glenn, the fontan actually went better than the others for us. Love reading your preparations, and yet again reminds me that I need to get our PTR set up already!!

I'm more of a planner than you are I think, but to be honest, I also haven't planned any dinners yet at DW as I'm not sure I want to pay out the money for them, and M (or Chatterbox as I call her) might not eat very much as she'll be excited, and perhaps impatient. I was also told we'll still get to meet any characters that she wants, for the most part.

Also wondering about the MVMMCP - is that the acronym for Mickey's Christmas Parade? I haven't researched it yet, but if GK is as magical as it seems to be, that might be enough for her. You'll have to let me know what you decide, and then bring a report back, as you go before we do.

heart hugs

Wow! Your daughter's defect is a bit more surgically-complex than Ethan's. Does she have Pulmonary Atresia or HLHS? Ethan's type of defect is usually a one-surgery one but he developed complications at 3 mos old that required a 2nd surgery at 4 mos. He may have to have a valve replaced later on. Also, it seems that some children develop electrical problems as they grow. I hope he doesn't but, it could mean a pacemaker later on.

I'm leaning toward doing Chef Mickey's for a meal. Someone else mentioned Ohana's but I need to do more research to see which would be better (maybe we do two...). I know our chapter doesn't include character dinners nor special event tickets (Like Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party or Mickeys Not So Scary Halloween Party) but will give us spending money that we can allot for whatever special things we want to do (but it's really geared for lunch and dinner and souvenirs). We are leaning towards skipping the MVMCP and instead taking in the Halloween and Christmas parties at GKTW.

I promise to do a trip report! Be forewarned (if you're reading this thread, you already know this)- I can be quite rambly and detailed!!

Heart hugs rightbackatcha!!!

Oh yes- and please continue to pray for our heart buddy, David. If he ends up needing to go home on milrinone, they will go ahead and list him for a heart transplant. I can not imagine what that process will be like for them They are going to try and get him started on enalipril again to see if that may help him get off the milrinone, but he's had a bad reaction to it in the past. Thank you!!!

 

[lovethattink]

I'm leaning toward doing Chef Mickey's for a meal. Someone else mentioned Ohana's but I need to do more research to see which would be better (maybe we do two...). I know our chapter doesn't include character dinners nor special event tickets (Like Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party or Mickeys Not So Scary Halloween Party) but will give us spending money that we can allot for whatever special things we want to do (but it's really geared for lunch and dinner and souvenirs). We are leaning towards skipping the MVMCP and instead taking in the Halloween and Christmas parties at GKTW.

I promise to do a trip report! Be forewarned (if you're reading this thread, you already know this)- I can be quite rambly and detailed!!

Heart hugs rightbackatcha!!!

Oh yes- and please continue to pray for our heart buddy, David. If he ends up needing to go home on milrinone, they will go ahead and list him for a heart transplant. I can not imagine what that process will be like for them They are going to try and get him started on enalipril again to see if that may help him get off the milrinone, but he's had a bad reaction to it in the past. Thank you!!!

My son is 8 and has different special needs. But we have eaten all over WDW and may be able to offer you some insight between Ohana and Chef Mickey.

My youngest has always had a hard time sitting for dinner at Ohana. they do have coconut races and limbo and parade around to entertain the kids. They never had any problems with me carrying him around for those things. He has problems with food textures and didn't like the burnt grilled taste on the meats. The last time we went we got him chicken nuggets and french fries. He was also afraid of the tikis and Polynesian decor. He's not any more. As adults, we have never had a bad meal at Ohana. The banana bread pudding with icecream is delicious!! Ohana is a character meal at breakfast, but not at dinner.

Chef Mickey is more colorful, lots of bright primary colors. The monorail runs through the building so that is exciting to a young kid too. I have several friends who ate here in the last few months and they were not impressed with the food at all. They ranked it mediocre. But they loved the characters and the interactions with their children.

We ate at the Tusker House for lunch, but got seated early enough that breakfast was still served. We REALLY enjoyed the breakfast there and the character interaction! Eating at the first lunch spot, brought the characters to our table at least 3 times!! Same thing happened when we ate lunch at the Crystal Palace, we hit both breakfast and lunch items, and the characters came around 3 times too!! We stopped eating character meals there because the time before we ate around 1pm and it took nearly 2 hours til all the characters circulated around once. We were glad we gave it another go, and we liked that first seating too.

 

[aym4Him]

My son is 8 and has different special needs. But we have eaten all over WDW and may be able to offer you some insight between Ohana and Chef Mickey.

My youngest has always had a hard time sitting for dinner at Ohana. they do have coconut races and limbo and parade around to entertain the kids. They never had any problems with me carrying him around for those things. He has problems with food textures and didn't like the burnt grilled taste on the meats. The last time we went we got him chicken nuggets and french fries. He was also afraid of the tikis and Polynesian decor. He's not any more. As adults, we have never had a bad meal at Ohana. The banana bread pudding with icecream is delicious!! Ohana is a character meal at breakfast, but not at dinner.

Chef Mickey is more colorful, lots of bright primary colors. The monorail runs through the building so that is exciting to a young kid too. I have several friends who ate here in the last few months and they were not impressed with the food at all. They ranked it mediocre. But they loved the characters and the interactions with their children.

We ate at the Tusker House for lunch, but got seated early enough that breakfast was still served. We REALLY enjoyed the breakfast there and the character interaction! Eating at the first lunch spot, brought the characters to our table at least 3 times!! Same thing happened when we ate lunch at the Crystal Palace, we hit both breakfast and lunch items, and the characters came around 3 times too!! We stopped eating character meals there because the time before we ate around 1pm and it took nearly 2 hours til all the characters circulated around once. We were glad we gave it another go, and we liked that first seating too.

Thank you for this information! It was very helpful!! The contenders for character meals are: Chef Mickey's, Tusker House, and Hollywood and Vine (simply b/c of the Disney Jr characters- I have heard mixed reviews on the food).

Have any of you used easywdw.com's crowd calculator calendars before? Josh, I believe that's his name, comes highly praised on the disboards.com forum- that's how I found out about his calendar. Anyway, we are trying to go by it to figure out where we want to go and on which days. I'm just curious if any of you used it.

Is the Halloween party at GKTW at all scary? There is a MVMCP on the same night and we are trying to decide which to go to. BOTH nights the MVMCP falls on are, incidentally, the "best" days for us to hit MK according to the crowd calendar. Unfortunately, it closes at 7pm both nights b/c of the MVMCP. ALSO, according to the crowd calculator, on the days (nights) the Main Street Electrical Parade is going on, MK is the WORST park to be in!! Has anyone had experience with going somewhere else (like Sea World or Universal) during the day and then going to the MK for the events at night?

Just when it seems I am getting a grip on things, something else pops in to make me go, "Huuuuuh?"

Not stressed yet! No worries. Going to go read Alyssa's PTR for inspiration!

 

[lovethattink]

Thank you for this information! It was very helpful!! The contenders for character meals are: Chef Mickey's, Tusker House, and Hollywood and Vine (simply b/c of the Disney Jr characters- I have heard mixed reviews on the food).

Have any of you used easywdw.com's crowd calculator calendars before? Josh, I believe that's his name, comes highly praised on the disboards.com forum- that's how I found out about his calendar. Anyway, we are trying to go by it to figure out where we want to go and on which days. I'm just curious if any of you used it.

Is the Halloween party at GKTW at all scary? There is a MVMCP on the same night and we are trying to decide which to go to. BOTH nights the MVMCP falls on are, incidentally, the "best" days for us to hit MK according to the crowd calendar. Unfortunately, it closes at 7pm both nights b/c of the MVMCP. ALSO, according to the crowd calculator, on the days (nights) the Main Street Electrical Parade is going on, MK is the WORST park to be in!! Has anyone had experience with going somewhere else (like Sea World or Universal) during the day and then going to the MK for the events at night?

Just when it seems I am getting a grip on things, something else pops in to make me go, "Huuuuuh?"

Not stressed yet! No worries. Going to go read Alyssa's PTR for inspiration!

I use easywdw and touring plans. Easywdw is free, touring plans is not. Definately more people go to the MK when it's opened longer. But just because the hours are extended doesn't mean you'll get more accomplished because it's opened longer. We have found crowds to be not bad when the park closes early. Just be prepared for crowds to increase drastically around 4pm on days it closes at 7.

Sea World is nice. Their Meal deal is good, and so is Universal's. I don't go to Sea World often so I'm not sure about which days are best. I know Universal is suppose to be best on Sundays and Mondays. We practically had Universal to ourselves on Labor Day.

My son makes it about 3 hours tops in a park. When the parks first open we accomplish the most. But he is not much of a morning person.

 

[aym4Him]

Ok. I'm stressed.

One, I haven't even checked to see if there are any character meal reservations even open because I don't know where we are going and on which days!

Two, if I am annoying anyone with my rants and whines, I profusely apologize. Stop reading now. Go to your happy place and relax. This isn't the place

So, when I really need to plan something (packing lists, to do lists, etc), I have to physically write things down. Up til today, I was good doing things electronically- mainly checking posts here, crowd calendars, feedback from friends/Disney Addicts on facebook. Tonight, however, it just got real! After scribbling on the front and back of the crowd calendar I printed out, I had to bust out my handy dandy notebook (which is, incidentally, blue (though I know Blue's was red on BC)) and pen. I thought, "If I can write it down and get things from my brain to the paper where I can SEE it, then we'll be good." Errrr.... The fact that I couldn't figure anything out after doing so makes me wonder about the aptitude of my brain.

Thinking out loud:

Saturday is our arrival day, thusly, we will spend it at GKTW and potentially picking up inlaws at the airport (an extra in-law just came into the picture which mentally threw a wrench in my "plans."). There's the high probability that FIL can't make it til Sunday and will have to figure out a way to get from the airport to the park we're in or GKTW to meet up with us OR, he'll just stay home and my SIL will take his place. If he goes, she will fly in on the same day as us and leave on Wed. I just don't even want to think about it right now.... Calgon, take me away!

Sunday is kind of up in the air. It's a good day to visit HS and AK but we are wondering if we should hit Sea World or something then. Then again, Wishes (not that we can go to the MK on that day b/c is supposed to be busy) is at 9 and Fantasmic (at HS) is at 6:30. We had thought about doing 1/2 day at AK and then the evening at HS, but we aren't sure......

Monday is supposed to be a good day to hit the MK. If we do the MVCP, though, we might just go to Universal/IOA or Sea World (if we don't do SW on Sunday) and then go to MK for the party (we can get in at 4, I've heard).

Tuesday is another good one for HS/AK. The stinky thing is that is one night the Main Street Electrical Parade is happening (one of my fav memories as a young person visiting the MK). But, Fantasmic is at 6:30 at HS.... Mayor Clayton's Bday party is that night at GKTW. Not sure about going to that..

Wednesday is good for EP/HS. MK is questionable. We weren't planning on going to EP just because there doesn't seem to be a lot there for Ethan. The MSEP is that night at the MK and so is Wishes (8pm). This would be a good night to be out at a park b/c I'm not sure E would participate in Village Idol (though I love watching kids perform! SO CUTE and inspiring).

Thursday is EP/MK and also the MVMCP but we are thinking about going to the GKTW Christmas Party instead of the MVMCP.

Friday is our departure day. I wish we could leave that night (or Saturday!) b/c the Pirates and Princesses Party at GKTW is that evening. Anyway, the MK/AK are both supposed to be less crowded on that day.

Even if there might be some character meal ressies left, do you have to have a ticket to the park in order to make one? I mean, we have 3 day park hoppers and if we've used up our 3 days, can we eat at Chef Mickey's on our departure day? I'm sure (and it makes sense!) the answer is no, but I just thought I would ask.

Now that I've typed all that, I'm going to read over it and see if anything becomes clearer. Can someone send me some magic please???

 

[carebearkidney]

I think with the dates you have and the MAW button you will wear - you shouldn't have any problems with crowds. Yes, more people will always be at MK, but I think regardless if there were 100 people or 10,000 people- y'all are going to have such a MAGICAL time! Sea World shouldn't really present any problems, there is hardly any ques as it is many shows. I'm sure the kiddos will enjoy Shamu's kiddy play area though. We just took our boys to the Chattanooga Aquarium the week before school started and now my oldest (6) is most excited about Sea World!
And I do believe you have to have a ticket into the park for character meals...
Sending hugs and Calgon!

 

[disneyfan'08]

Even if there might be some character meal ressies left, do you have to have a ticket to the park in order to make one? I mean, we have 3 day park hoppers and if we've used up our 3 days, can we eat at Chef Mickey's on our departure day? I'm sure (and it makes sense!) the answer is no, but I just thought I would ask.

Now that I've typed all that, I'm going to read over it and see if anything becomes clearer. Can someone send me some magic please???

Chef Mickey's is at the Contemporary Resort (so it's not in the Magic Kingdom). You don't need a park ticket to get there so that could be a perfect place to go for breakfast on your departure day!

If you have any other Disney questions, let me know! I go to Disney once a year so I'm very familiar with all of the restaurants and parks. I don't know much about Sea World or Universal so I really can't help with that part of your trip.

 

[aym4Him]

I think with the dates you have and the MAW button you will wear - you shouldn't have any problems with crowds. Yes, more people will always be at MK, but I think regardless if there were 100 people or 10,000 people- y'all are going to have such a MAGICAL time! Sea World shouldn't really present any problems, there is hardly any ques as it is many shows. I'm sure the kiddos will enjoy Shamu's kiddy play area though. We just took our boys to the Chattanooga Aquarium the week before school started and now my oldest (6) is most excited about Sea World!
And I do believe you have to have a ticket into the park for character meals...
Sending hugs and Calgon!

Thank you! I know...I just need to take a breath and not get all worked up.

Our dates have actually changed by one day. There must have been a miscommunication between the wish manager and our wish granters. We are actually set for November 11th-17th. I just found this out today. At first, I misunderstood and was thinking we were going Saturday-Saturday (which was AWESOME b/c it kind of gave us an extra day). I was until about 5 minutes ago. I just picked E up from "school" and sat down here to check email and reread the one from the WM this morning. "So glad Nov. 11th-17th works out for y'all!" Oh. Sunday-Saturday. I had planned out our week (finally!) during lunch today so I'll need to go back and re-tweak.

We can extend either way, if we want to. When we thought we were departing on Fri the 16th, extending to Sunday worked b/c DH doesn't have to miss any more work than he planned. Oh well!! No worries. We get to add the Pirates and Princesses Party to our plans as a possible option now (or the MVMCP if we don't go on Monday).

Ok. Back to the planning! I'll have an itinerary for you soon!!!

OH!! Character meals like Chef Mickey won't require a park ticket b/c it's at a hotel (the Contemporary). At least, that's one we can hit w/o needing an extra ticket (in case we decide to do a meal after we've used our park hoppers up).

Hope y'all are having a great Monday! The allergies are running rampant here...E has been sniffling and swiping (He's still not mastered the art of nose-blowing...it sounds like it's full but then he blows and nothing comes out??) but, thankfully, he hasn't had a fever and was able to go to school today. He is rocking it this year, by the way! Two days in the books (with a weekend in between) and no tears! Woot!

 

[aym4Him]

No reservations available at Chef Mickey's. Yup. It's my own fault for waiting too long.

May do Tusker House. E's 1st choice was Hollywood & Vine, but we didn't plan on being at HS in the mornings (planned on splitting with AK).

Any other suggestions?